We have an S/390 mainframe at my new job that’s been running COBOL applications since the late 90’s. The mainframe is getting old enough that we need to migrate to a newer system. We’re a small enough business that we can’t warrant spending the money to upgrade to new mainframe hardware and the program logic has been a constant work in progress for 30+ years, so it has a lot of functional value. I’ve been considering moving the functionality to a Linux machine and using something like OpenCOBOL to recompile as an executable binary instead of trying to rewrite it in a newer language. I haven’t messed with a mainframe enough to have any clue how or where to access this information and the gentleman that wrote all of the programs is unfortunately no longer with us. I’ve read that SSH is an option, but I’m not even sure how to get the ball rolling on that with a mainframe. I use Linux on a fairly regular basis, so I’m familiar with SSH, but from my understanding those mainframes aren’t a simple OS that you can merely connect to and navigate the file system to retrieve data like we can in modern operating systems. Can anyone give me some pointers to get a sense of direction for accessing the source code for the COBOL programs? Are there default locations that they are stored, etc.? They’re somewhat simple programs that don’t use any DB2 functionality and will hopefully compile on a different system with relatively minimal debugging and fixes. I’m certain that I’ve left out necessary information that would help getting an answer to this question, and I can provide any additional information that is needed to help you all help me. I suspect that SSH isn’t enabled by default, but maybe I’m wrong there too. Any assistance is greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone!
Although not a programming question I'll provide some guidance I think might help you.
First, this is a business decision about where to invest.
Do we upgrade the system to a newer model and upgrade some software and acquire the skills to keep the system running? (System Programming, OS upgrade and cost of migration, newer platform (used z13 could be an economical option, storage systems to support the mainframe)
Migration of existing workloads to other platforms. (Cost to migrate code, sizing of performance needs, new technologies to replace existing access methods like VSAM or dare I say ISAM if the applications are old enough)
Status Quo ... leave things where they are and keep the lights on
In evaluating any option you have to assess the risk to the business and what would a disruption cost? IMHO, its less about a technology like SSH or COBOL on Linux but requires some serious assessment of the current state, the acceptable to be scenarios and the cost of pursuing one of those options.
My comments are not intended to instill fear but provide a framework of how do I approach analyzing a challenge of this magnitude.
There is no default location where source code is stored on z/OS (it is z/OS you're talking about, right?). Source code is usually stored in PDS data sets. The naming of those depends on the installation, i.e. the company, and whether or not any software like Endevor, ChangeMan, etc. is being used to maintain the sources.
Since this is old z/OS (OS/390) COBOL code, chances are the code is making use of OS specifics such as record level I/O, VSAM data sets, etc. These are the parts that will not work on a non-z/OS platform without major rewrite. So, you will need to look into the sources.
SSH is available on z/OS, but it needs to be configured and enabled. You need to check with your z/OS sysprog. FTP, and NFS are other options, but again, they need to be configured and enabled.
Transfering the sources is the least of your problems, I'd say.
I have to agree with the prior two answers, but have some additional suggestions. This is a business decision what to do on the system.
Finding the program to understand what it does is the first requirement. Since you know what program is running that may be the name of the source file. That you will need to find. The source file probably will be in some library manager, the first place to look is in the ISPF menu system. There will be an option for the library manager you are using if you are using one. Based on your description you may be using something called SCLM which would should up, or you might see Librarian or Panvalet. You will need to get into ISPF by connecting using a 3270 connection emulator. Once you find the file, using FTP or SFTP may be the best, or your emulator may just provide a transfer mechanism. You will need to find the related files as well, which should also be defined in the library manager.
Once you have the file, you will need to figure out what it uses as mentioned above, it will be working with some kind of data file, and that will be the biggest part to deal with.
If it is a batch program it is probably part of a schedule, and there are other programs also running that you will need to find and figure out how they fit together.
Once you have an understanding of all the parts then you can work to make the right business decision as to how this should be run. You may want to upgrade, you may want to look to getting z/OS as a cloud service if you don't want to upgrade but you want the function. Or it may be a simple program you could move. That will be much easier to figure out once you have the details.
You say the program logic has changing for 30+ years. Was it only one person making all the changes ? Would anyone on the team have some idea about the PDS's that the user had access to ? That might be one of the places to look for. As the previous answers suggested , most shops would have store the source code in some kind of config mgmt tool like SCLM or panvelet. If you have access to the load code, there are utilities that can be used to inspect the load member to get a CSECT listing which would have the names of the obj members that make up that load.You can check with your mainframe admins. That can get you the source code file names. We use SSH from USS in our shop to move code from a HFS folder to gitlab. I have also used plain FTP to just transfer source code files to my workstation . But yes, first you have to find where it is stored.
Related
I often share ABAP code via forums, github and so on, which is often intended to work on any ABAP-based system. Unfortunately, it often happens that some of the objects I use (database tables, types and so on) only exist in the solution I am working with (for instance C/4HANA which works on an ABAP system).
It's important to understand that there are several solutions developed by SAP, which are independent from other solutions, but are to be installed on an ABAP system, which includes the ABAP language itself and closely-linked external objects like those in the ABAP dictionary. Such SAP solutions are SAP R/3, SAP CRM, SAP SRM, SAP SCM, SAP BW, S/4HANA, C/4HANA, BW/4HANA, SAP Solution Manager, etc.
For instance, let's say I want to ask a question about the join in ABAP and I provide the following example (that I developed on a C/4HANA system, but the question doesn't concern C/4HANA):
REPORT.
DATA gt_partner TYPE TABLE OF crmd_order_index-partner_no.
SELECT DISTINCT a~partner_no
INTO TABLE gt_partner
FROM crmd_order_index AS a INNER JOIN crm_jest AS b
ON a~header = b~objnr
UP TO 10 ROWS.
cl_demo_output=>write( crmd_order_index ).
Many people have S/4HANA, not C/4HANA, so the code won't compile on their system because the database table crmd_order_index exists only in C/4HANA. Probably those people won't answer or they won't be able to verify their answer, so I think I could make an effort to improve the example and make it work on any ABAP system. This is of course a very simple example, but imagine that you have tens or hundreds of lines.
I know that one solution is to install an ABAP Developer Edition on our own laptop, because it contains the minimal ABAP configuration, and test the ABAP code on it. But it's relatively complex and long to install, occupies a lot of disk space, just to check a "simple thing".
Is there another way to check easily and quickly whether the ABAP code compiles in any ABAP-based system? Or any other idea?
I would also like that this solution applies to code as big as abapGit for instance.
For information:
One well-known ABAP tool which works in any ABAP-based system is abapGit.
The question is not about the versions (for instance for checking that ABAP code made on an ABAP 7.52 system compiles on ABAP 7.0 systems) because I think it's a much more complex problem.
In StackOverflow, an ABAP question whose code doesn't work on any ABAP system weakens the principle of Minimal, Reproducible Examples.
The cleanest way to share a piece of ABAP sample code seems to be this:
create a local package such as $MY_SAMPLE,
copy all sample code and dependencies in,
push it to a new, clean https://www.github.com repository with abapGit, and
add a README that provides the ABAP version the code was written for.
With these best practices:
Reduce the code and dependencies to the minimum required to make the sample work. Remove calls to other development objects not directly related to the problem. Restrict yourself as much as possible to the functions and APIs available from the ABAP platform.
If there are dependencies that form part of the problem, for example in "How do I use the CRM function module XYZ?", or that cannot be copied for size or copyright(!) reasons, identify the SAP software component they are a part of, and list it as dependency in the README.
Verify that the example compiles and works by executing it. This is not reliable, as it may accidentally still access un-copied dependencies you forgot to copy, but it will at least give you an idea.
ABAP is not really special here. Providing minimal working examples is always an effort, in any development language. It requires disentangling the affected code from unnecessary dependencies, and replacing the required ones with minimal working stubs. This is part of why asking good questions is hard work, and why StackOverflow appreciates good questions with reputation.
Sandra I dont think there is a good nor easy answer to this problem. We have been suffering for years with this problem. I got burnt so often with ABAP language across releases. Especially SQL and ABAP unit Tests. Even good old char02 burnt us last week. Yeah Char02 is an industry specific data element no longer supported in s/4 Hana. You need to have every possible release of sap abap be sure all is ok. There is a remote syntax check option, which sounded good at first. However it starts with 7.02 SP14 . So its no good for 7.0 And you need access to these releases in the first place. Who can afford that? Why cant 1 ABAP system be able to do downward compatible checks. :( No Big surprise to me ABAPGit has settled on a recent but not latest abap version as "current version". We have to support code for 7.0 to 7.5+ since we have customers from S/4 hana to 7.0 with 1 code base. We also have a common code base with a SolMan/ CRM and SAP gateway and ECC Business suite. Keeping that code base clean for all environments is easier said than done.
As far as examples go Sticking to strictly ABAP NW examples sounds easy, but unless you limit yourself SFLIGHT or tables like T002 / T006 it is harder than people realize.
A basic but not perfect solution is to check the development class of all objects in a transport before release. We have been doing that for some time. tracking what is a valid Basis object for what purpose is HARD. I have used basis objects that dont exist on 7.2 systems and Failed on import. You can then add a TADIR date to your checks.
At the end of the day I just import into the oldest (7.0) system as a smoke test.
Ill be watching to see if someone has a magic bullet solution :)
Good luck
Since the releases are downwards compatible you can set up a system with a very low release and develop your code on this.
ABAP OO was introduced with release 4.6C
Usually when I'm writing an example, for posting in my blog or somewhere online, I use the travel objects, tables like: sflight, spfli, scarr, etc, which usually are present in most systems, I don't know if they are present in C/4, solution manager or some other solutions, but I think that's probably the best objects to use.
Also another thing that's probably a good idea is to use classic ABAP, and by classic ABAP I mean not using sentences that are only compatible with ABAP >7.40, because in my experience there are still systems on SAP BASIS 7.31.
It's also probably a good idea to use classics reports, unless you are obviously writing about OOPs or the new ABAP 7.40 like sentences.
Your question in not simple as that seems. As you see, the abap code depends on customer repository so you need to have a knowledge of every system to get your code simple and fast.
For the select, you have to know all type of abap possible select.
Best ways is to declare your Types wich contains all of your table so you can select in database without a select distinct. If you have to use a Function or, a class or any kind of object that does not exist on that system, you can create it. Sometimes create is not a best way, so you can search and memorize the oldest functions/calss/object. For example, the function conv_exit_alpha_input you can use now a simple row wich do the same.
So if you want to implement an example abap code, you have to respect the KISS rule and declare as much as you can like readme or creating view or table ect.
I'm having an issue with a web application I am responsible for maintaining.
The system experiences regular bugs, and our support vendors are always asking us to see if we can "replicate the error in UAT". This is obviously a reasonable request. A lot of the time, for various reasons (some of which are clear, some of which are not), these errors are not present in UAT. This lack of bug reproducability in a testing environment is adding huge amounts of friction to the bug resolution process.
There are 3 key pieces of our system architecture where these bugs are flaring (the CMS, the API layer, and the database). I am proposing we set up a system job that perpetually clones these 3 parts of the system in to a sandboxed test environment. This cloning would happen periodically (eg, once every 24 hours), and automatically.
Is there a technical term for this sort of environment? Is this an established method of helping diagnose system issues? Is there somewhere I can read up on the industry best practices for establishing something like this? Thanks.
The technical term for this kind of process is replication it is often done for some systems like databases, but normally not for testing purpose, but in order to increase available, so the replication is used as a failover spare.
An exact copy of a production system, with all the data is not you'll find often, due to the high demand on resources. Also at some points to two systems have to differ. Most systems (I know of) have tons of interfaces you just can't copy a complete system systems.
Also: you only need the copy of the production system when you actually debugging an issue. And if you are in the middle of that you probably don't want everything to go away and get replaced by a new copy.
So instead I would recommend to setup scripts that allows to obtain a copy of the relevant parts on demand.
Also you might want to consider how you might be able to modify your system to make it easier to setup a copy.
For example, when you have all the setup automated (with chef/docker or similar) you should be able to setup the same system again anywhere you want, so you now you just have to get the production data over.
Which is an interesting point. Production data often contains secret information (because it is vital to the business, or because it is personal data). You don't want this kind of stuff hang around in a test system everybody can access.
I have almost 4 months learning/working in SAP. I've done several reports and enhancements all along this time but recently I began to work in a requirement which is related to Mobile Data Entry or RF and it basically consists to add the EAN and some other data to the dynpro 2502.
I made a copy of the dynpro 2502 in program SAPLLMOB into SAPLXLRF 9502, related the user exit MWMRF502 and programmed the basic functionality of it but it is not working as I expected because this exit is very limited and it only lets me import and export a small group of data and is difficult to perform exactly as the standard.
I've been searching all over internet and a lot of people make their own implementations and other just simply change the standard. I don't know how to make my own implementation cause I don't understand all the process within and the alternative of changing the standard code would be better for performance and time spent in development but as I quoted I would have to change the standard code and that's something I would like to do only if there's no other option.
But the question is ¿Is it OK to change the standard? ¿How often is the the standard code changed in SAP implementations? ¿What would be the better alternative?
Thanks in advance.
You are asking the right sort of questions and it is good that you are not just plowing ahead without thinking about the consequences of what you are doing. Keep researching!
As far as changing the SAP standard goes, you generally do not want to copy an object to change it. For screens SAP quite often creates a user-exit with a sub-screen that can be modified by the customer. For Web-Dynpro you can use enhancement points and/or bADI's to extend the functionality.
Try to look for one of the following:
A SAP BAdI in the area that you want to change (transaction SE18),
a user-exit allowing you to change the necessary screen(s) (transaction SMOD),
explicit enhancement points within the functionality,
one of the implicit enhancement points in functionality
There are a lot of documentation on sdn.sap.com as well as within the SAP help regarding the topics above.
If none of are available, you may have no other choice but to modify (repair) the SAP standard objects. In order to be able to change the SAP standard you need to register the object(s) that you have to change on SAP OSS and get a repair key that the system needs to allow you to make changes. Always ensure that the SAP Modification Assistant is switched on when making changes, this will make your life a lot easier when you patch or upgrade your system.
If at all possible try to find an experienced ABAP programmer to help you with this.
Also see this question regarding changing SAP standard code:
Edit: Thomas Weiss on SDN has a helpful blog series on the enhancement and switch framework.
Always make sure that there's absolutely no other way to implement the functionality you need. If you're sure about that, then either write your own implementation from scratch, or simply change SAP's code. Just don't copy SAP's programs to the customer namespace, because I can guarantee you that that'll turn into a maintenance nightmare. You'll have to decide yourself whether the size of the change is worth the time building your own implementation, or changing SAP's.
If you decide to change SAP's code, keep in mind that all changes will pop up for review when the system is upgraded, which will take time to evaluate and adjust to the new SAP code.
Your options are, from most to least desirable:
Check the documentation of the application on help.sap.com for possible extensibility scenarios. There are many ways how SAP intends for you to customize their applications through various kinds of event architectures. Unfortunately any attempts by the various departments at SAP to agree on one event architecture and then stick to it failed. So you have user exits, BTEs, FQEVENTS, BAdIs, explicit enhancement spots and many more. If you want to know what's used by the application you need to change, RTM.
Use an implicit enhancement spot. Enhancements are a great way to modify standard software in ways SAP did not anticipate, because they are easy to disable and usually pretty stable during upgrades (use the transaction SPAU_ENH after an upgrade to confirm that your enhancements still make sense in the new version of the program). You will find implicit enhancement spots at the beginning and end of every include and every kind of subroutine, which allows you to inject arbitrary ABAP code in these locations.
But sometimes there just is no implicit enhancement spot where you need it to be. In that case you can copy the whole program into the customer-namespace and modify it. This gives you the freedom to do whatever you want with the program while still retaining the original program as a possible fall-back. It is usually a good idea to use as many components from the original program as possible, by including its includes or calling FORMs from the original program via PERFORM formname IN PROGRAM originalprogram. The main problem with this method is that after a new release, your program might no longer behave as expected. You will have to look at the new version of the program and see if there are any changes you need to port to your version. And there is nothing in the SAP standard that assists you with this maintenance task. So you are responsible to keep a list of all your copies of standard programs.
Just modify the program directly. But this is really a last-resort option for programs that are too complex to copy into the customer-namespace. The problem with this is that it means SAP will no longer offer you support for that program. If you post a ticket about that program on launchpad.support.sap.com, and they find out you modified the program, they will assume it's your own fault and close the ticket. But fortunately, when you upgrade your system, you have the transaction SPAU that will help you to merge your changes with the new versions of the modified SAP programs.
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I have recently heard about Magic programming language from several sources and didn't recall ever hearing about it before. It was mentioned that it is a programming language from Israel.
I did some googling and couldn't find much information about it. I couldn't find any code examples, and wikipedia didn't have any information on it either.
I think this is the site for it http://www.magicsoftware.com/en/products/?catID=70 though I am not sure, as it mentions uniPaaS instead of magic. However other material on the site indicates that this is the new name for it.
I was interested in learning more about it from it's practitioners, rather than the company. I saw several claims on the internet that it provided really fast application development, similar to claims made by RoR proponents when it came out.
How does it compare to VB?
Is it still a better RAD tool than current .net or mvc frameworks like django, ror ...etc?
How hard is it to learn?
If you can post some sample code it would be most helpful as well.
Could this site be it? Though it links back to the page above.
You're right my friend, Magic is the original name of the "programming language", nowadays is called UniPaaS (Uni Platform as a Service), I use it to develop some business application. Maybe is the fastest way to create an applications(data manipulation), you can create apps in just a few days, but like everything in life has its own drawbacks:
it's very weird so that makes it
difficult to learn.
you do not have all the control of what's happening in the background
and you have to pay a lot for licensing (servers,clients, etc)
If you are interested in learning this, you can download a "free" version of the software that only works with sqlite databases called UniPaaS Jet.
Magic Language is as it’s called today uniPaaS, it used to be Magic than eDeveloper and now uniPaaS as PachinSV menchend before.
uniPaaS is an application platform enabling enterprises, independent software vendors (ISVs) and system integrators (SIs) to more successfully build and deploy business applications.
You can download the free version of uniPaaS Jet here: http://web.magicsoftware.com/unipaas-jet-download,
try it yourself and see how easy it is to use.
Magic technology as you descried is a Magic Software Enterprises tool (uniPaaS), you can find more information on:
official website: www.magicsoftware.com/en/products/?catID=70&pageID=55
uniPaaS Jet developer group on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/unipaasJet/
Magic developer zone: devnet.magicsoftware.com/en/unipaas
Let me know if you find the information helpful
Bob
As PachinSV explained, there is a RAD once called Magic, then eDeveloper, now UniPaaS. This RAD is dedicated for database applications. Programming in this RAD does not look like anything else I know, you mostly don't write code as with usual languages, but it is nearly impossible to explain just with words. The applications are interpreted, not compiled.
As PachinSV said, when developing, you must follow UniPaaS' way of doing things. This is probably why so many people never manage to use Magic properly: if you thought like Magic before learning about it, then you will adapt to it easily; but if you have a long and successful experience using other database development tools, then often the Magic paradigm will never become natural to you. The learning curve is quite steep, you must learn a lot of things before being able to write a little application.
Previous versions stored the "code" inside a database table. The last version, UniPaas stores the code in xml files. I could send you an example, if PachinSV does not answer you before. But the files are pretty big: the smallest xml file I have in a test app is 4000 bytes, and any application is made of at least 11 files, an empty application is 7600 bytes. You must also understand that developers never use those files (they are undocumented AFAIK), they are only the storage format used internally by UniPaaS. The only way to use them is to set them up as a UniPaaS application.
I'm still an active MAGIC Developer... This is the old name used and its a completely different paradigm like some of you mentioned. I've been developing it from Magic version 8.x to eDeveloper 9.x to 10.x then renamed to UniPAAS.
The newer version is much easier to use and it is still very RAD in the sense that there is little or no code you write... a lot of the common programming tasks like IO, SQL command...etc is handled by the tool and is transparent ( so even less code to write since we use it in almost all types of applications)... Its mostly an Enterprise tool... you wouldnt use it for small application...
You can download the free version to learn the paradigm... but the enterprise licenses are expensive.. you need both the development tool and the runtime license if you want to deploy... so it can be costly for small scale projects...
I enjoy it personally, especially when you have to do quick proof of concepts or a quick data migration or porting onto any db platform and bridging any existing system through a wide range of gateways they provide with the licensed version.. It is up to date with the commonly used web technology out there...like SOAP, RIA ...
It's more popular in Europe... The HQ in the States is in Irvine... we used to have 2 branches in Canada but it closed down in 2001 .... Visit the Magic User Group on Yahoo... Its a very active forum with lots of cool people who will help you out in your quest...
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/magicu-l/
I Programmed with Magic for 6 years and found it to be a amazingly fast tool, easy to understand if you are a competent database programmmer because all operations are really about data manipulation. It is certainly a niche area develop in and because of this jobs are few and far between. As it is interpreted there are really no bugs to make. It will work with many databases/connections simultaneously but there is a big memory and processing hit.
Drawbacks :
Little control over communications between machines and devices
No mobile API as yet
Niche area so few skilled practitioners or companies willing to invest.
Good Points :
You can say you are a Magician; you can impress people with uber fast apps development (really)
It is easy to understand if you don't have a PHD in Maths
zero programming "bugs" can creep in. What you do is what you get.
Developed in The original Magic PC referred to by several of the above folks.
It is exactly this: FAST, FAST, but expensive and rigid in what it will allow you to do. It works on a tick tack toe like matrix. Dropping in commands into the various sections determines when they are run. The middle column is run indefinitely until you break the cycle. It is like a do Until loop. If you have to do an item once you put it into this infinite loop and end it after one cycle.
The first column procedures are run first, ONCE, before the infinite middle column is run. The 3rd column of commands is run after the infinite cycle, once. It is very efficient and logical once you get over the idea of an infinite loop.
Types can be specified and an associated program to present the type. Then everywhere the type is used all the settings automatically kick in. I like especially that one can write the program and 5 months later change the name of a variable and it is carried throughout the program. In fact the program does not use your name for anything. The internal name of any and all variables is hidden to the end user, so of course it is not a problem to change a name. It takes a minute to write an input program for any table. It takes a minute to write an export/import program for all the data files in the database.
Attaching to a type of database like Btrieve or SQL independent of the program itself.
I stopped using the language because they demand more for the runtime engine than I could charge for the programs I wished to run with it. Bill Gates went the opposite direction. VB is superior in control and being able to drop `10 datagridviews onto the same screen, but development is 10 times slower.
It's niche then is PROOF of concept for a program in a big company or conversion, importing, exporting for a development company. It is good for $25k programs that are database heavy and not going mobile.
uniPaaS, Magic PC
I did some Magic work around 1993. It was a DOS based 4GL that came from Israel. Haven't seen it since.
How does it compare to VB?
It doesn't.
Is it still a better RAD tool than current .net or mvc frameworks like django, ror ...etc?
If you mean "is it more Rapid", then yes, otherwise no.
How hard is it to learn?
About as hard as learning MS Access.
Coincidentally, if you want to get an idea of what it is and how it works, I've found that comparing it to MS Access is handy. It works in much the same way from a user's or developer's perspective. Obviously what happens in the background is vastly different, but if you've ever developed a form in design view in Access, Magic will seem very familiar.
Google tells me there's also MAGIC/L. All I could find about it was this blurb:
A procedural language written in
Forth. Originally ran on Z80's under
CP/M and later available for IBM-PCs
and Sun 3s.
The only Magic programming language that I know about is one used by a company called Meditech. It's a proprietary language derived from MUMPS.
The language is truly miserable - here's a sample.
I manage a small team of developers who up till recently have all been working on independent projects.
We have now all come together to work on one holistic project and its really tough. People are changing things, without consulting other programmers and its very difficult to manage.
We are also working in a pure production environment (no test/production)
I am a bit lost on where to start, I am looking at products like Team Foundation Server or their is a product by Red gate called "Source control"
Does anyone know any good books on the above subject, I cannot be the only person in this situation? :)
Source Code:
If you're looking for how to use source control (versus how to get your team to a controlled source environment) you should check out Source Control HOWTO by Eric Sink. The disclaimer here is that he has written a source control product but the HOWTO isn't specifically tailored to it.
Database Schema:
If you're looking for how to get your database (structure not data) in source control (since it was mentioned in the title) then you should check out this Coding Horror post: Get your database under version control. It covers some basic concepts and points to a few articles on how to actually implement getting your database in source control.
Source Control Software:
If you are looking for actual source control software, a list of applications can be found here: List of Source Control Systems with Visual Studio Plugins.
Don't make the mistake I did when putting the database definition under source code control by allowing branches and merges. This led developers (and managers) to assume they could have several versions of a table in the same database, leading to programmers overwriting each others changes, and having incompatible versions of source code and table definition all over the place.
As you might well imagine this lead to a great deal of wasted time and many frayed tempers.
Depending if time or money is more important, do you have the option to being someone in for a short time with the specific task of improving your processes? They would be able to set you up a test environment, install a version-control server and get your guys (and you) up to speed.
The first thing that you need to do is to give every developer their own copy of the database.
Secondly, you need each dev to be able re-create a baseline database from the master.
Once each dev is happy with their changes to the database, you will then need them to create a series of patches for their changes.
Lastly, each one of these patches needs to be able to checked in to source-control, and re-distributed to the other devs.
If you are looking for a good source control server, consider Subversion, with Tortoise SVN as your client.
Take a look at DBSourceTools. (http://dbsourcetools.codeplex.com).
It's specifically designed to help developers use source control for database changes.
This tool will allow you to baseline your database at a specific point, and create a named version (v1).
All files are scripted to disk, and very easy to add to a Subversion repository.
Have a look at the patching process for creating and using patches.
Have fun.